**Live Stream Sites ~ Ustream**

jay helfert

Shoot Pool, not people
Gold Member
Silver Member
I agree with the OP that live streaming is one of the most important things happening in the pool world today. It's getting the game in front of so many people who might not otherwise see it and making it accessible to millions more. No question it introduces new people to the game.

It is kind of a guerilla approach to growing our sport and giving it more appeal to the masses. We are getting in the "back door" of the media so to speak. But this is a door that opens wider and wider all the time. I am still a believer that POOL will have it's day in the Sun. It has been a very popular sport at least twice in my lifetime. After The Hustler and after The Color of Money, the sport boomed with many new rooms opening across the country and in Asia and Europe. This second boom did a lot to erase the negative stigma that had been attached to pool. It brought pool into the mainstream, and created the perfect arena for the APA and other league systems to grow.

Pool continues to thrive as a televised sport in the Asian and European markets, indicating that there are viewers out there who enjoy watching. I know pool is on a down swing right now, but I fully expect to see it make yet one more big comeback. This is a sport with resiliency. It isn't going to die or go away. There will come a time when indoor sports are all the rage. That's when pool and ping pong will take over. That's my prediction for the future.
 
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stuckart

Paint Dry Watching Champ
Silver Member
Bob!

You have done so many great things in keeping all of us in line and on schedule to catch each and every stream possible.

When I started Streaming in 2008, we were using primative equipment and there were only a few of us really doing any tournaments and action. Since then I've been able to learn new games (3C, 1 Hole, English 8 Ball, etc.) from the comfort of my home. Without Streaming I would never have even began to understand these games.

I have stuck by Ustream the entire time as I've watched others branch out for this reason or that and I've seen many of them return to the originator. The new Software (Producer) is really nice and allows streamers to give thanks to all it's sponsors with a click of the mouse.

I'll be streaming this weekend (April 24th-25th) from Stingers in Phoenix for some BCA Warm-up 8-ball before Vegas from http://www.azpoolscene.com

And like so many, I'm looking for a few sponsors to give thanks and showcase their pool products.

Great Job Bob on so many levels.

For those of you that don't know. When I first was streaming from my own house, Bob jumped on from across the country and provided me with some much needed pool lessons all via Ustream. I played the Ghost in a race to 9 and got beat something like 9 - 5. I checked the Chat Box and right there Bob had listed many things that I was doing, things to correct, etc. etc. We chatted back and forth and I made some adjustments. I then played the ghost again and drilled him 9 - 3. The tiny things that he saw through the miracle of streaming, allowed me to correct my game and vastly improve! I thank you very much sir!!!
 

oldzilla

Accu-Stats Messenger
Silver Member
Bob covers all the bases here ! He's got all the channels and instructions to help anyone that has not use Ustream before. Or for the ones have and do not have all the pool channels available Bob has got them.

Don't forget this is all FREE ! Create your account on Ustream and log into any chatroom and it is almost like being there. Your garranteed the best seat in the house (your house)and you can enjoy the comforts of home while you enjoy stream after stream for free.

Bob along with alot of us think this is the best thing that pool has been introduced to in many years. TV never had LIVE events and now streamers are doing sooooo much for the game and need our support.

So sign up, log in, and support them in the friendly ways they provide. Like chipping in and being part of drawings for great prizes. Most of the time the drawings are only for the internet viewers.

Some have trivia contest for prizes and others are just plain free !
How can ya beat that !

Support the streams and thank Bob for his endless efforts !:thumbup:
 

robleyf7

AZB Horse 2016
Silver Member
yes i agree this will help pool for the better for alot of us that can.t make it to the tournaments with the support an streams we can now be there an support the streams

this is a great thing don.t forget to vote

thanks bob for all what u doing for us an everyone an thanks to all the peple that streams the tournaments we love u all
 

cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
One thing I can say is you are a MAJOR source of support for live streaming and we appreciate you more than you will ever know.

Thanks for the kind words but this whole thing is not about me, it's about the sport itself and all that goes with it. You and Gene (Crown Cues) have been MAJOR as well as other sponsors and, most importantly, those that have been steady viewers -- it's takes all aspects to make it work It's a team effort the largest part of which is the viewers!


When we (Crown Cues) first saw live streaming pool, we saw the possibilities and decided to put a lot of support behind it, because it will take the game to new levels, as long as enough of it can remain free to view for the mainstream.

Finding new support and new player interest requires free streams, because people will not pay for something they think they have no interest in, although they have been known to meander into a free stream and decide it's a great thing for cue sports and that they have to see more.

And support it you have! The possibilities you speak of are what has driven me from the get-go. True, the right balance must be stricken for this whole concept to be successful. There is a need and a necessity for both based on respective audiences. There is a reason for the saying "different strokes for different folks"!

Because of the free streams, I have also been working on a new project, SponsorRack.com I had anticipated being up and running by now, but there have been some roadblocks I've had to deal with, first. I'm so doggone close I can feel it and that makes it even harder to wait on. We have supported and sponsored live streams for a year and a half and we knew they had grown beyond our sponsorship abilities and they need more support, which is why I came up with SponsorRack.com to help find sponsors for the live streams. It didn't take long to decide to work toward finding sponsors for cue sports tours, benefits, etc., and very quickly, players chimed in wishing to find sponsors for their talents.

Good idea -- I feel yea on the computer side of things. Here again, a team effort is needed from the viewer to the players, to the streamers, to the sponsors. All who love or are involved in any aspect!

If anyone is interested in sponsoring a live stream (free or PPV), a tournament, league, player, etc., please contact me and I'll get you added to the list. I am currently taking names and as soon as my website is ready to accommodate sponsors and those needing sponsors, I will send out a message to everyone who is interested. You don't have to be rich to be a sponsor. That's what's so great about sponsoring live streams. If you want to sponsor with as little as $50 or $100 per month or even just once, it can be done. Just let me know you're interested and I'll get you added to the list.

We (Crown Cues) still plan to sponsor live streams, when we can. But, now we will also have the ability to sponsor them through SponsorRack.com by sending new dollars toward them, enabling their survival.

Good info and good on you for taking this on. It won't be easy and I feel it will take some serious effort on your part for it to work -- hats off to you for that as I know you have the tenacity.

Thanks to you and everyone out there who supports live streams by their financial support, product support, or simply by their presence. Bob - thanks for all the great links and the recognition you have brought to live streams.

Let me add my thanks as well and a big "felt green grin" :D.

We hope to be watching and supporting live streams as they morph into something even greater than people can currently imagine. Cue sports have a new image. People are now freely able to learn more about artistic pool, 3 cushion, 1 pocket, 14.1, and all the other cue sports available to their computer/tv screens. They can ask and learn and grow to love the sports, bringing new dollars and followers to the arena. We are so proud to be a part of something so wonderful!

Can I get an Amen!
 

cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
Nice job Bob.

At the moment my limited connectivity will prevent me from using any streaming.
I also have a cap of 5 gigs a month.

G3 network you understand.

Thanks Sev -- appreciate you jumping in here. I have a cap too --- don't make me bust it out :rolleyes:. I'd love for you to be able to watch and participate in all the woofing in the chat.
 

cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
UpStream has now been shared on Facebook.

Might I suggest everybody that is not a mutual friend do so as well. We all have friends in the billiards world that do not belong to AZB.

Lets see if we can pump up the volume for both AZB and Bobs efforts.

"Upstream"? Is that something new or did you mean to say "ustream"?

As for FB -- I have had two accounts and bad experiences in both. Perhaps I need to make another using only my AZ username. Pumping up the volume does bring attention! Thanks for that Sev :thumbup:.
 

cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
---clip ----


The Internet, can't be AZ :)cool:) , went nutzo!
 
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cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
I agree with the OP that live streaming is one of the most important things happening in the pool world today. It's getting the game in front of so many people who might not otherwise see it and making it accessible to millions more. No question it introduces new people to the game.

It is kind of a guerilla approach to growing our sport and giving it more appeal to the masses. We are getting in the "back door" of the media so to speak. But this is a door that opens wider and wider all the time. I am still a believer that POOL will have it's day in the Sun. It has been a very popular sport at least twice in my lifetime. After The Hustler and after The Color of Money, the sport boomed with many new rooms opening across the country and in Asia and Europe. This second boom did a lot to erase the negative stigma that had been attached to pool. It brought pool into the mainstream, and created the perfect arena for the APA and other league systems to grow.

Pool continues to thrive as a televised sport in the Asian and European markets, indicating that there are viewers out there who enjoy watching. I know pool is on a down swing right now, but I fully expect to see it make yet one more big comeback. This is a sport with resiliency. It isn't going to die or go away. There will come a time when indoor sports are all the rage. That's when pool and ping pong will take over. That's my prediction for the future.

What Mr. Helfert said, save for the ping pong ... at least he didn't say curling! Before I die, I want to see billiards (in any discipline) in the Olympics! For those of you nay sayers who think this won't happen -- my Dad (may he RIP) once said "You'll never beat me at this game kid" too but it wasn't long after that that he wanted weight!

I've said it before, I'm saying it again, and will keeping saying it: Thanks Mr. Helfert for all you do for our sport. I hold you sir in the very highest regard!

<Sorry for the above two post -- no clue what happened. Things just wouldn't post then this post appeared three times :scratchhead:.>
 
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cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
Bob!

You have done so many great things in keeping all of us in line and on schedule to catch each and every stream possible.

When I started Streaming in 2008, we were using primitive equipment and there were only a few of us really doing any tournaments and action. Since then I've been able to learn new games (3C, 1 Hole, English 8 Ball, etc.) from the comfort of my home. Without Streaming I would never have even began to understand these games.

I have stuck by Ustream the entire time as I've watched others branch out for this reason or that and I've seen many of them return to the originator. The new Software (Producer) is really nice and allows streamers to give thanks to all it's sponsors with a click of the mouse.

I'll be streaming this weekend (April 24th-25th) from Stingers in Phoenix for some BCA Warm-up 8-ball before Vegas from http://www.azpoolscene.com

And like so many, I'm looking for a few sponsors to give thanks and showcase their pool products.

Great Job Bob on so many levels.

For those of you that don't know. When I first was streaming from my own house, Bob jumped on from across the country and provided me with some much needed pool lessons all via Ustream. I played the Ghost in a race to 9 and got beat something like 9 - 5. I checked the Chat Box and right there Bob had listed many things that I was doing, things to correct, etc. etc. We chatted back and forth and I made some adjustments. I then played the ghost again and drilled him 9 - 3. The tiny things that he saw through the miracle of streaming, allowed me to correct my game and vastly improve! I thank you very much sir!!!

Ahhh Jerry, you're making me blush over here. Casper ask for any weight yet? You are one of those that got me going down is "stream". I appreciate you for that my friend! Thanks for having my back so many times when I'm moderating someplace and am being pulled in 15 different directions. You always say, "You da man Bob" ......... from my perspective, "You B da man Jerry!" Look the other way now Jerry cause I'm gonna talk about you now.

This Jerry feller is one of those that, when at a stream, is always jumping in with a helping hand whether it be a link that is being talked about, the status of a tournament, the results of a challenge match, etc., etc. The Arizona folks are lucky to have him and his web site around -- great writer that Jerry and very, very knowledgeable about "the game". Wish we had someone like him/something like his web site at least half as good in this area :(.
 

cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
Bob covers all the bases here ! He's got all the channels and instructions to help anyone that has not used Ustream before. Or for the ones that have and do not have all the pool channels available Bob has got them.

Don't forget this is all FREE ! Create your account on Ustream and log into any chat room and it is almost like being there. Your guaranteed the best seat in the house (your house) and you can enjoy the comforts of home while you enjoy stream after stream for free.

Bob, along with a lot of us, think this is the best thing that pool has been introduced to in many years. TV never had LIVE events and now streamers are doing sooooo much for the game and need our support.

So sign up, log in, and support them in the friendly ways they provide. Like chipping-in and being part of drawings for great prizes. Most of the time the drawings are only for the internet viewers.

Some have trivia contest for prizes and others are just plain free !
How can ya beat that !

Support the streams and thank Bob for his endless efforts !:thumbup:

Very nice post Gary. There is no need to thank me -- that is not what I am about. Like I've stated earier it's all about promoting "the sport" period, end of story. I really appreciate the notion Gary.

Gary is another one of those that never hesitates to lend a hand at any stream. It is because of him that the Accu-Stats chat is so great. Recently, when Andy Chen was streaming Melissa Herndon's very first SCL9T event, Gary jumped right in and helped make things run like clock work. I know Melissa, Andy, and viewers appreciated his professionalism -- I darn sure did as did UpstateAL. It's no wonder Pat Fleming has you on board sir!
 

cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
yes i agree this will help pool for the better for alot of us that can.t make it to the tournaments with the support an streams we can now be there an support the streams

this is a great thing don.t forget to vote

thanks bob for all what u doing for us an everyone an thanks to all the peple that streams the tournaments we love u all

You are one of the most stand up guys I know so this coming from you is special, special indeed! Thanks AZ Horse!
 

HudsonSmith

AzB Silver Member
Silver Member
Many of you will remember the AZ Billiard's Stream List thread entitled "Live Stream Sites - Update" I created back on 12/29/08. You may also recall that I was "called away" for some time overseas and have noticed that it has remained dormant since (the last post being 07/26/09 by my friend and yours Barry Doc).

Well, I had lots of catching up to do both on the home front and with my businesses so it was pretty low on my priority list. Once I did get to it, I noticed the pool streaming world had "blown up" so to speak--which is a good thing. Most of them were using ustream so I decided to concentrate my efforts there and I'm glad I did because the Dashboard and Community features thereat cut right to the chase. I spent seemingly countless hours, strike that --> days -- gathering the sites. If you follow what I'm about to post here you will have those sites in just a matter of minutes and be able to see what is streaming by clicking on just one tab :thumbup2:.

A few things I wish to point out before proceeding. Many of these streamers use ustream to broadcast but have their own sites. Please show your support by viewing at those sites. Always check the front page of AZ under "Streamer Central" before going to ustream for those streaming elsewhere or are on PPV. Here we go:

1. If you are a member of ustream, proceed to #2. If not, go here and "Sign Up" in the upper right hand corner. It is recommended you use your AZ username for instant recognition as most viewers and broadcasters are themselves part of the family.

2. Go here and click all the blue icons you desire to follow until they read "Stop Following". In so doing, you will notice that some of those on the list do not broadcast. They are on the list because they are very active viewers of pool live streaming and, by following them, their activity will appear in the "Feed Manage" portion of your "Dashboard" (See Paragraph 4a below). I have gotten many new links therefrom; therefore, I recommend you add them as well and continue adding others that you feel are active enough to warrant you following them. There are 18 pages of them but it will only take a few minutes.

3. Once that is done, go to the top center of the page and click "Dashboard". If anyone is streaming they will appear under "Live Shows I'm Following". Bookmark this page. I cannot overemphasize how much of a time saver it is. It allows you to quickly scroll through what is being streamed without continuously searching ustream, going in and out of links, or PMing people/creating threads asking if something is being streamed or where such and such a link is.

4. Become very familiar with the functions on the Dashboard page--you'll come to love it.

a. Just below the Dashboard feeds and to the left you will see "Feeds Manage". This will tell you what activity has taken place that was not recorded that may be of interest to you.

b. To the right of "Feeds Manage" you will see "Upcoming Manage". For some unknown reason, most pool broadcasters do not religiously announce upcoming events which would appear here. It's worth a quick glance though as one never knows in regards to this one.

c. Lastly, just below "Upcoming Manage" is "Recorded Recently". The name says it all. This is a great feature as it only contains those you are following. You can quickly find all the recent recordings you missed or want to see again without having to go to a bunch of links to find them. This, in conjunction with the Dashboard (Paragraph 3 above), really make this page into what I call Streaming Central = one page with all the action.​

Another way to gather more links: Occasionally, when at a stream, I will left click on a username I know to be a proponent of pool streaming, go into their profile, and click the "following" number (located directly under their avatar as shown below) to see if something new can be added in the same manner as done here. I have gotten quite a few sites that way.

View attachment 132822

Visit as many streams as possible and show your support. We love to watch, they need the hits to garnish ustream pop-up monies, and the sponsors need their products out there as much as possible. While there, it wouldn't hurt to do a little recruiting of more folks to join our domain--AZBilliards;).

The streams are getting better and better and are making a positive statement right now -- something our sport has lacked for a long, long time. I see live streaming as an excellent avenue to bring more people into our sport. I hope you feel the same.


cmbwsu, you have done a GREAT job in locating all the streamers both here and abroad. I'm quite impressed and thank you for this information. I will be utilizing it this weekend. I will say my hellos if I see you in the chat room.

Hudson Smith
 

cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
cmbwsu, you have done a GREAT job in locating all the streamers both here and abroad. I'm quite impressed and thank you for this information. I will be utilizing it this weekend. I will say my hellos if I see you in the chat room.

Hudson Smith

There are some scheduled to stream this weekend. Give me a shout if you see me. My username is the same as this one! Enjoy my friend!

Thanks for the nice comments!
 

cmbwsu

Pool Stream Advocate
Silver Member
Suggest AZers check it once in awhile to see if any have been added. I have added around 55 new ones this month alone!!! The fastest and easiest way to do this, without going to the entire list each time, is to click on "New Users First" hereat. If the blue icon at the right says "Following" click it until it reads "Stop Following". This might help visualize it for you.

Screen shot 2010-04-27 at 4.39.14 PM.jpg
 
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